Machine for winding musical instrument strings and the like



July 9, 1968 A. VINCIGUERRA 3,39 ,874

MACHINE FOR WINDING MUSICAL INSTRUMENT STRINGS AND THE LIKE I Filed Dec. 9, 1966 I7 H61 INVENIOR, AMELIO VINCIGUERRA,

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,391,874 MACHINE FOR WINDING MUSICAL INSTRUMENT STRINGS AND THE LIKE Amelio Vinciguerra, 2218 McDonald Ave, Brooklyn, NY. 11223 Filed Dec. 9, 1966, Ser. No. 600,579 2 Claims. (Cl. 242-7) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A machine for winding cover wire onto a core, e.g., a musical instrument string, connected between opposed shafts driven by a first motor while a second motor drives a carriage axially alongside the core to provide pitch to the cover turns. A second carriage is freely, slidably mounted on the first carriage and carries a cover wire supply spool, braked tensioning roller and guide so that the driven, first carriage provides normal pitch of winding while the second carriage is free for axial movement relative to the first carriage to compensate for winding variations.

The present invention relates to winding machines, as for the manufacture of musical instrument strings of the type comprising a pliant longitudinal core wire on which a round wire is closely and tightly wound as a coil thereon.

Generally in these machines, there are two spaced power-driven shafts in axial alignment, between which the core wire is spanned taut. Both shafts turn in unison after an end of the cover wire is attached at one end region of the core wire and then led therealong to wind spirally thereon. The guide directing the cover wire ontothe core wire, is on a carriage which is either free-moving or is power-driven along the core wire. When the carriage is free-moving, it is moved through the action of the cover wire. Where the carriage is power-driven, its speed must be accurately set to effect close winding of the cover winding onto the core.

The present invention is particularly concerned with that part of the machine which leads the cover wire along the core wire during the winding operation. It is therefore evident that my improvements relate to the carriage structure and its appurtenances. These I will show on a winding machine and explain their construction and mode of operation. Winding machines of this general class and the incidents of their operation are well known in this art, so I will refer to them only to the extent necessary to explain my invention.

Wire is designated as of a specified diameter. But the commercial product is never of truly precise uniform diameter. There is some variance in any run of stock. With such condition present, space in the winding of the cover wire often occurs between turns thereof made of wire of reduced diameter and an overlapping occurs where adjacent turns are of wire of increased diameter, when worked on winding machines where the carriage is power-driven and of course set to travel a distance equal to the specified size diameter per revolution of the core wire. Such spacing and overlapping, no matter how slight, effect the tone quality of the string, and often the string is useless for musical instruments where the players fingers are to be pressed thereagainst and slid therealong. So it is found in practice that the power-driven carriage is mostly used for applying a cover wire which is fiat.

Where the carriage is free-sliding, its movement during the winding operation, is through the action of the cover wire which is round wire. Such arrangement makes a good string if the cover wire is of appreciable diameter, for it is called upon to do substantial work to move the carriage along the full length of the core wire which is to be covcred. But trouble starts if the cover wire is fine, for it cannot do the tremendous work it must perform to effect carriage movement of appreciable extent at a high rate of speed at which these Winding machines are run. There is so much breakage and overlappage and chaotic working, that small diameter cover wires are guided by hand, which is the common practice therefor.

It is therefore the principal object of this invention to provide a novel and improved carriage structure for winding machines of the class mentioned, which calls upon the cover wire to effect only minute movements of the carriage to accomplish closeness of turns on the core wire, hence the cover wire used on the machine may be of any diameter commonly used in musical string manufacture.

Another object thereof is to provide a novel and improved carriage structure of the character set forth, which is simple in construction, reasonable in cost, and efi'icient in carrying out the purposes for which it is designed.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent as this disclosure proceeds.

For the practice of this invention, I use a winding machine having a power-driven carriage, but the guide for directing the cover wire onto the core wire, is on a slide which is freely movable on the carriage, along the line of carriage movement, that is, both the carriage and the slide move along the core wire.

During each revolution of the core wire after its first, the driven carriage moves the cover wire along the core wire, a distance a bit less than the diameter of the cover wire, and then the free slide derives movement from the cover wire whereby the cover Wires position is adjusted so the turn made by the cover wire on the core wire, is close against the previous turn of the cover wire on said core wire.

In the accompanying drawing forming part of this specification, similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a musical instrument string winding machine whose carriage is power-driven and equipped with a slide thereon with appurtenances in accordance with teachings of this invention. Parts of the machine which are not necessary to be mentioned to explain this invention, are omitted.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the carriage, its related slide and appurtenances.

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary section taken at line 44 in FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of components on the slide, showing the manner in which the cover wire is threaded for application to the core wire. This view is in a sense diagrammatic, for the slide per se, is omitted to attain clarity of illustration. The cover Wire is shown in the process of being Wound on the core wire.

FIGS. 2-5 are drawn to a larger scale than is FIG. 1.

In the drawing, the numeral 15 designates generally a winding machine whose frame includes a elongated horizontal bed 16 on which there is a fixed headstock which may be a combination bearing and gear box structure denoted generally by the numeral 17 and tailstock which may be a combination bearing and gear box structure indicated generally by the numeral 18, slidable along said bed and releasably securable thereto. Said gear boxes have a common input shaft 19 positioned along the machine and driven through a speed changer 20, by the motor 21. The output shaft 22 of the gear box 17 and the hollow output shaft 23 of the gear box 18, rotate in the same direction and in unison. A shaft 24 extends through and out of both ends of said hollow shaft and is keyed thereto so it shall rotate therewith and be longitudinally slidable therethrongh. The ends of the shafts 22 and 24 which are towards each other have provision, as for instance the hook 25 and the chuck 26 respectively, to attach the ends of a core wire 27 thereto. A means is also provided, which may be the air cylinder 28, to control the position of the slidable shaft 24, to make the core wire taut for the winding operation of a cover wire 29 thereon, and to sag the finished wire so it can be removed and a new core wire can then be mounted while the shaft 24 is shifted to the left in FIG. 1. All of the construction thus far described and the provision of a driven carriage 30 which moves along the machine, are well known in this art. It may be noted that in the embodiment here illustrated, said carriage has rollers thereon which ride on the horizontal tracks as shown at 31, 31', and said carriage is attached to one flight of a chain belt 32 which extends along the machine, and is driven through the miter gears 38, run by a motor 33 through a speed changer 34. The speed of the shafts 22 and 24, is determined by the setting of the regulator wheel 35 which adjusts the speed changer 20. The speed of the chain belt 32 which moves the carriage 30, is determined by the setting of the regulator wheel 36 which adjusts the speed changer 34. As aforementioned, the improvements I have made relate to the carriage 30 and its appurtenances, which I will now describe in detail.

The carriage 30 includes a horizontal table member 37 extending forwardly of the machine. This table has an opening 39 along the machine, through which extends a block 40, arranged for sliding movement along the machine, on the horizontal track bars 41 which are suspended along the opening 39, below the undersurface of said table member, across the brackets 42 which are fixed on said undersurface. This block has secured the top thereof, an elongated horizontal plate 43, extending along the machine. This block and plate assembly, constitute a slide indicated as 44. Extending downwardly from said block 40, is a holder or unreeling device 45, to support a supply spool 46 of cover wire 29, which wire is to be formed into a closely wound, tight coil 29' on the core wire 27. The slide 44 carries an upward post 47 whose position is adjustable thereon by means of the headed screw 48. This post has a horizontally positioned wireguide finger 49, which extends therefrom to receive the line of the core wire 27, where it terminates in a crotch 49'. This finger has a wire guide 50, fixed thereon intermediate its endsv The post 47 has a hole therethrough, also to serve to guide the cover wire. The slide carries a vertical shaft 51 which is rotatably supported in bearing structure 52 fixed atop the plate 43, and the bearing structure 52' fixed on the undersurface of this plate. This shaft at its upper end, carries fixed thereon a wire guiding pulley 53, and fixed at its lower end, there is a wheel 54, which is subject to a brake indicated generally as 55, whose friction block 56 presses against the periphery of said wheel; such pressure being adjustable by turning the screw 57 on the brakes bracket 58 which is fixed to the bearing structure 52'.

The wire 29 from the supply spool 46, is guided through a freely rotatable tubular arm 59 of the unreeling device 45, which latter is of a type well known, and thence over the guide idler pulley 60 which is on a bracket 61 extending from a post 62 carried by the slide plate 43. Said wire 29 passes through an opening in this post and then around the pulley 53 as shown in FIG. 5, where it is pressed against by the spring-biased tightener wheel 63, which is shown in FIG. 3, and thence through the guide holes in the post 47 and the block 50, from which it is guided by the crotch 49' onto the rotating core wire 27, to form a tightly and closely wound coil 29 thereon.

The speed changers 20 and 34 are adjusted by the setting their regulator wheels 35 and 36 so, that for each revolution of the core wire attachement shafts 22 and 24, the carriage 39 will be moved to'the right in FIG. 1,

V a distance slightly less than the thickness of the cover wire 29 is set through the usual loop (not shown) at the wound, on the turn just completed next to it on the left on the core wire.

For the start of a winding operation, the carriage 30 is at the left end of the machine, in position so that the crotch 49' is very near the hook 25; the slide 44 being at the left end of the tracks 41. This condition is shown in FIG. 1, Where the machine is at rest. After a core wire 27 is mounted and made taut, the free end of the cover wire 29 is set through the usual loop (not shown) at the end of the core wire, which is used to mount the core end onto the hook 25. Then the motors are activated for the core wire to rotate and the carriage 30 to move to the right, until the winding is completed along a prescribed length on the core Wire, whereupon by having some means stop the cover wire, the latter will break at the end of the winding as is well known in this art.

Aspreviously mentioned, it is to be noted that during each revolution of the core wire after the first turn thereof, the driven carriage 30 moves the cover wire along the core wire, a ditsance a bit less than the radius of the cover wire, and then the free slide will be moved, deriving its movement from the cover wire, whereby the cover Wires position is adjusted automatically so the turn being made by the cover wire on the core wire, comes up close against the previous turn of the cover wire on the core wire. The movement of the slide 44 will be to the right, and in total a comparatively short distance in relation to the long distance the carriage will travel to the right.

Since this invention is involved only with that part of machine operation which has to do with the winding of the cover wire onto the rotating core wire, I have not shown any of the control system to initiate and stop motor operation, or to cut the cover wire when the winding is completed, or for the return of the carriage, neither do I set forth the manipulations for mounting a core wire or for removing the completed string. However, manners of accomplishing same are well known to those versed in the art and are not necessary to understand this inventron.

made with apparatus taught by this invention, is one in which two round cover wires are simultaneously laid side by' side and wound as though they were one, onto a core wire, so along the core wire the turns of one cover wire are between the turns of the other. For such manufacture, the slide 44 would carry two cover-wire supply spools and incidental guiding and tensioning means for each of them, using however only one guide arm 49 whose crotch would have a w-shaped notch to guide both such cover wires side by side onto the core wire, which is believed readily understood by those versed in this art, and

therefor no further illustration thereof is deemed necessary. However in such instance, for each revolution of the core wire, the carriage 30 would need move a distance equal to twice the diameter of a cover wire, less a small fraction of 'the radius of one of them.

In any event, it is mandatory that for each turn of the core wire, the carriage 30 shall travel a distance which equals the thickness of the cover wire, if only one cover wire is applied, diminished by less than the radius of such cover wire, and if two cover wires are simultaneously applied side by side onto the .core wire, then for each turn of the core wire, the carriage shall travel a distance equal to twice the diameter of one cover wire, diminished by less than the radius of a cover wire.

The means to stop the cover wire when the winding operation is complete, and the core is not stopped, so the cover wire will break, as it always does at the core wire, is usuallya normally open clamp through which the cover wire 'is guided in its passage from the supply spool, and said clamp is made to automatically close by some cammeans actuated when the carriage has reached .the'end of its travel. It is suggested that such stopping Another type of musical instrument string which can be clamp be in the place of the post 62, and can be of any type which is well known in the art.

Although I have specifically referred to the making of musical instrument strings, this invention is equally adaptable in cable manufacture where a cover wire is made into a closely and tightly wound coil on a rotating core wire.

This invention is capable of numerous forms and various applications without departing from the essential features herein disclosed. It is therefore intended and desired that the embodiment shown shall be deemed illustrative and not restrictive and that the patent shall cover all patentable novelty herein set forth; reference being had to the following claims rather than to the specific description herein to indicate the scope of this invention.

I claim:

1. In a machine for winding round cover wire onto a pliable taut core of the type including a frame, a pair of spaced aligned shafts journalled on the frame, means for rotating both said shafts in unison in the same direction, means on each of the facing ends of said shafts to hold an end of the core respectively, a carriage spaced from said shafts, mounted on the frame for movement along the core between said shafts, means for moving said carriage from one shaft to the other, the improvement consisting of a slide, means mounting said slide on said carriage for free sliding movement along the core, means for holding a supply of cover wire on said slide and means on said slide for guiding the cover wire from the supply to the core; the speed of rotation of said shafts being in such relation to the speed of travel of the carriage that the last turn of cover Wire wound at any instant during the operation of the machine, will be overlapped by the next turn wound onto the core wire, an extent which is less than the radius of the cover wire, whereby by action of the free slide, the turn last made will be adjusted to lie up close against the immediately preceding turn.

2. A machine as defined in claim 1, including means to adjust the speed of the shafts and means to adjust the speed of travel of the carriage, in order to establish said relation.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,251,205 7/1941 Revel 242-11 XR 3,023,135 2/1962 Wiltshire.

3,031,153 4/1962 Attvvood et al 2429 XR 3,034,542 5/ 1962 Blanco 242-9 XR 3,039,707 6/ 1962 Beck et al. 2429 BILLY S. TAYLOR, Primary Examiner. 

